Siege of Petersburg—Grant's Fourth Offensive

Union General Ulysses S. Grant pursued a strategy of two-pronged attacks on Petersburg and the Confederate capital at Richmond, first attacking Lee's positions around Richmond and then striking again south of Petersburg. In August 1864, Confederate forces repulsed the Union attack on the Richmond line from August 14-18, and forces from both sides returned south to support the fighting below Petersburg. From August 18-21, as the fighting at Richmond faded, Union troops swung south and severed the critical Petersburg and Weldon Railroad. On August 25, 1864, Union troops tried to extend their lines along the railroad to Reams Station but were defeated and swept back by the Confederates. By the end of Grant's fourth offensive, Lee's supply lines had been bent but not broken.

Petersburg, Virginia · United States